Rituals

by Prof. Shri R. Srikanta Kumara Swamy

Rituals have been a part of every religion, from the time of the inception of the religion and those that exist today. But we often find people referring to Our Hindu religion as a very "ritualistic religion", i.e. a religion consisting of many rituals. The way they are being conducted now, in these times has made many understand "Ritual" as just an act done or as an act to be done with!. "It is a ritual to be gone through" is a common refrain. It has come to mean anything done mechanically without applying our minds to it. Is it so bad as all that? What is a ritual after all?

Whenever a teacher comes to the classroom, the students stand up. It is a ritual. Whenever the President enters the Parliament House, all the members stand up. It is a ritual. In our religion whenever we see our elders, we touch their feet and do Pranam. It is also a ritual. Are all these rituals devoid of any meaning or significance? No. All these rituals are nothing but the manifestations of the students" respect to the teacher, the members" respect to the President, the youngsters" respect to the elders. In the same way, whenever we feel grateful to someone, we say "Thank You" to him and shake hands with him. If we feel extremely grateful, we may even press his/her hands so much, that it will be painful to them! When we feel happy meeting someone, we shake hands, hug and embrace . All these acts can be called rituals manifesting our inner feelings to the individual concerned. The same holds good even in the case of rituals in religion. We go to temples, perambulate and prostrate before the idol.We also undertake piligrimages, perform various havans and pujas etc. Why does one do all those actions?If we dig deeper to find out, one of the reasonable explanations for those actions would be that we are only "manifesting" our feelings.we are expressing outwardly, the feeling of respect, love and affection towards GOD. We get Pooja performed with flowers. Again, another way of manifesting our gratitude or respects to HIM. We repeat his names 108 times or 1000 times. It is a ritual manifesting our eagerness to remember HIM always with all respect. We get Abhisheka performed. It is a ritual. Again manifesting our respect to him by offering him all the Upacharas that we would offer to an invited guest at home. The same meaning is there in the poojas performed at home too. We perform a Homa. What is that? Again, a ritual manifesting our gratitude or respect in a slightly different way. We believe that Agni is Havyavahana (one who carries the food that we offer to other deities) and promptly delivers the food (Havis) given by us to the proper deity whom we are invoking.

Hence we can conclude that any ritual performed is nothing but the manifestation of our inner feelings. That is why Sri Sri Swamiji of Sringeri in his commentary on Viveka Chudamani mentions, "Bhaktihi maanasadharmah tadabhivyanjaka dehavyaparaha prahvibhaavaha.

(Bhakthi is an intellectual disposition, "Prahvi bhaava" is nothing but an articulation of the body to manifest the feeling of "Prahvi bhaava" or humility ). So, it connotes that the feeling should arise first and then the rituals follow. Imagine an individual shaking hands with us, absolutely without any feelings, or an individual who performs Pranams without any feelings or does worship without any feeling. We can easily discern the mechanical nature of the ritual, devoid of the internal feeling. We simply say he is doing it mechanically. What is the use? Absolutely nothing, except an exercise for the body!!

The question may arise, "what is the use of a ritual at all.? Isn.t it is enough if one has only the feelings? No. Man.s nature compels him to find an outlet for his emotions by doing various "actions. . We find satisfaction in doing something under its influence. That is Ritual.

There may be rituals or actions which do not require any feelings to be aroused. But we know that any action done with "Shraddha" or "faithfully., is better than one done without any feeling of Shraddha. Teaching in a class is a ritual. It can be done in two ways. The teacher prepares well and delivers in such a way that all the students understand it well. This is the feeling of Shraddha. It can be delivered just like that without proper preparation, without bothering himself to know whether the students have understood or not. The first way of delivering is definitely better than the second way. A man has to give back the debt to the individual from whom he has taken the money. This can again be done in two ways. With all reluctance, he can just give back the money without even a murmur of thanks. It can also be given back with a pure sense of gratitude, profusely thanking the individual. The second way is definitely better. It is therefore said that, the intention behind an action is much more important than the action itself.

As Aldous Huxley puts it, "A well-performed ritual is a work of art by which even a skeptical spectator will get a kick. It will give an enduring and lingering satisfaction to both..

How can we get the intentions or feelings of gratitude, love and respect aroused? It may not be difficult towards an individual who has helped us, or one who commands respect by his character itself, or one towards whom we have natural feeling of affection because he happens to be our kith and kin. But, how do we get the feelings of respect, love, gratitude aroused towards something which we can neither see or touch? Or how can we gain that "lingering satisfaction" or the "kick" that Huxley talks about, when a ritual is well-performed? That is where the Mantras, the Shlokas, the Sahasranamas come in. When the Mantra extols the greatness of that Almighty, as one who has created this wonderful world, or who has given us this body of ours, or one who has provided us with all the paraphernalia required for our enjoyment, etc, we naturally feel grateful to HIM and the ritual of Pooja in different forms attains some meaning. This can happen only when we understand what is being uttered, be it a Mantra, a Shloka or a Nama. If we do not understand anything, but perform the "act" only, it becomes a meaningless ritual.

It is to gain that pure feeling of lingering satisfaction, a feeling bereft of all the negative thoughts , that we MUST understand and be involved in whatever ritual we perform.

A Pooja is being performed. The Purohit says "Paadyam Samarpayami" and asks us to offer two spoonfuls of water, by pouring that into another vessel. What is this Ritual? "Paadyam Samarpayami "means,we are offering water for God, to wash his feet. This concept is the same as what we offer to an esteemed guest coming to our house. We make him sit on a chair, and wash his feet or offer water to him to wash his feet himself. That is .Paadyam.. When we are performing Pooja we do not have the God in human form, but only as an idol or a photograph, or a painting or a Saligrama or Linga. We cannot see his feet and wash. What should we do? We have to simply imagine HIM in the human form and imagine washing HIS feet when we offer two spoonfuls of water. The offering of two spoons into another vessel is purely symbolic, but our feeling must be complete with the feeling of washing of his feet. All these are contained in the two words

.Paadyam Samarpayami ..

By any stretch of imagination, we cannot say that the two Sanskrit words or an appropriate Mantra or Sloka has the power to take the two spoonfuls of water to the actual feet of GOD. It is ridiculous!

(The words definitely do not mean just offering of two spoons of water! ) In addition ,we can recite a Mantra or Shloka in praise of the Deity and imagine washing HIS feet. The same concept is there in all the Upacharas. We offer food as "Naivedyam.. What is that? It is no doubt a ritual, but if done with understanding, provides a wonderful mental satisfaction of having fed God with our choicest foods. We offer many many things knowing fully well that God does not consume them. It is only for OUR satisfaction that we offer. That is why Pooja is defined as "Poojanama santosha janakaha karma samudaayaha . . "Pooja is nothing but a bundle of rituals giving pleasure to the performer..

To day, unfortunately, even the recitation is done by the Purohit and he does not bother whether the doer listens to them or not and neither is the "doer" interested in knowing what is being done. But the actions or rituals are gone through scrupulously. How can we reconcile with such a situation? Should we believe that whatever we do, Abhiseka, or Naivedya, etc etc, will reach the Deity? If it has to reach the deity, then by what power or mechanism? Simply saying that the power of the Mantra or Shloka preceeding the ritual will take the materials to the deity is meaningless. Commonsense tells us that this is a very far-fetched imagination and cannot be a fact. Well, we can certainly imagine that the Naivedya has reached the Godhead. Nothing wrong, but it can remain only as an imagination, a pious heart felt feeling. If such a pious feeling has to be aroused in our hearts, we must understand what we have recited. When we recite

"sahasra sheerShA purushaha " and perform "Aavahana " to the deity, what is the feeling that should be evoked? It is that, The great "Purusha ., who is behind all the heads, feet, eyes and hands in all the living beings of the entire universe, and one who is Omnipresent, and one who transcends this universe by a large measure, is being invoked, so that we can feel his presence in the symbols in front of us. This is the essence of the Mantra. When we do the Avahanam to any deity with this Mantra, we only feel that great "Purusha" is here, in the symbol that we are worshipping. The action of offering flowers or Akshata to the Idol, is symbolic and only to strengthen the feeling that HE is in the Idol. The other Mantras in the

"Purushasuktha" extols the greatness of that "Purusha" and when we do each upachaara by reciting those Mantras, we feel as if that great "Purusha" is in front of us symbolically and is accepting what we offer. All the actions or rituals for the Upachaaras are just outlets for our feelings "The Mantras of the Purushasuktha ", by any stretch of imagination, cannot literally carry what we offer, and make them reach that "Purusha ". After all, where is HE? HE is every where. For our convenience, for the ease of meditation and contemplation, we have many types of symbols to which we offer the Upacharas.

Such a pious imaginative feeling, can be had only when WE recite the Mantra and understand it too. What kind of feeling will be aroused when the Purohit recites the Mantra audibly or inaudibly and we perform only the ACT? It will be just a futile exercise and a waste of water, or Kumkum or flowers.

When this is the case about Mantras, we can imagine the fate of Shlokas or Sahasranamas. The familiar Shloka during "Pradakshina" is a classic example. We say

.Paapoham,paapakarmaham; paapathma paapasambhavaha ;thraahi maam kripaya deva,sharanaagata vatsala.

( I have committed many sins. I am born as a sinner because of sins committed. Oh God! The protector of people who surrender to you, Kindly protect me).

It is a heartfelt feeling of surrender. When we understand the Shloka, such a feeling is aroused. Doing a "Pradakshina" is an action to give an outlet to that feeling of surrender. The feeling of surrender can come only when we understand the meaning, otherwise the tongue repeats the words, the body rotates through 360° and falls down flat. Surrendering to HIM is a very fine feeling, which must arise in the heart and nothing to do with the body. Such a feeling cannot come by repeating some unintelligible words and falling flat on the ground.

In the Lalitha Sahasranama, we say "Janma-mrityu-jara tapta jana vishraanti daayini ...(you(Lalitha) grant peace to those, who are struggling with the triple sufferings of Birth, Death and Old age) How can this happen? If one contemplates on that Upanishadic Brahma, whom we are worshipping symbolically as Lalitha, we get rid of that suffering of birth, death and old age. That means, the name should arouse in us the feeling that SHE is the all encompassing deity in the universe and we should immerse ourselves in HER contemplation. Such a contemplation can bring us peace. Let us not imagine that SHE is sitting there with a bowl of peace to offer to us, as soon as we recite the words in the Nama!!! And offer Kunkum or flowers.

There is a practice of doing Ramayana Parayana or Gita Parayana which are supposed to be meritorious rituals. Ramayana is a piece of wonderful literature and the Slokas are meant to understand and enjoy. We must become one with Rama or Lakshmana or Bharata or any other character in the Kavya. How can we expect any benefit from repeating the words in a Shloka (Maybe sometimes incorrectly too!!) without understanding anything?. Then, they will be as good or as bad as any other word. For example, in the beginning itself, Valmiki is asking Narada to name a man in this world who possesses certain qualities like

.Dharma,Krtagynata,satyavaakyata,dhridavratatva,satcharitra. , etc.etc.

The qualities form the very foundation of our culture. If one goes on repeating those Shlokas 100 or even 1000 times, what we can expect to happen? It is as good or as bad as repeating the letters in the Sanskrit Alphabet 1000 times!!. When Rama says, with all love towards Bharata

.Na sarve bhraatarastaataa bhavanti bharatopamaaha.

(Not all brothers are like Bharata). Should we not be able to join with Rama in his love for Bharata?

When Rama is standing alone for the battle in "Janasthana ., in front of fourteen thousand cruel demons, Valmiki describes the scene in a poignant manner as an exclamation from the Devas assembled there.

.Chaturdasha sahasraani rakshasaam bheemakarmanaam; Eko Ramascha dharmaatma katham yuddham bhavishyati?.

(There is the dharmaatma Rama, standing alone in front of 14000 cruel demons that are there. What kind of battle is this? )

It seems when Kulashekara, the Raja of Travancore heard this Shloka rendered by a Lecturer, he had been so immersed in the story, that he asked his minister to get the army ready to go to "Janasthana " to help Rama! Kulashekara was "with. Rama at that moment and truly experienced every moment of what Rama was up against.

This is the kind of feeling aroused and should be aroused in a genuine reader of the Ramayana. If one does not understand, how can he get that feeling at all? What other benefit can possibly be there by repeating that Shloka 100 times in a Parayana?

The same holds good for Bhagavad-Gita too. It is full of Philosophical concepts only to be understood and practiced in life. What kind of benefit can we expect by repeating the Shloka only without understanding them?

Such a Parayana is a meaningless ritual.

Let us not be under the illusion that they are all Sanskrit words and just a repetition of those words will bring all benefits to us. Then, why such monumental treatises like Vedas, Ramayana, Bhagavata, Bhagavatgeetha etc? If we go on repeating the letters in Sanskrit Alphabet with all their "maatras ., some 1000 times a day, by permutation and combination they are bound to become as many Slokas in Ramayana or Geeta.

Parayana by itself is not wrong. But if it has to be really useful, one should understand the full meaning of what one is reciting.

It is only then that our rituals really become meaningful.

There is another aspect of the rituals which we should consider. We have already said that they help to strengthen the feelings aroused in an individual, feelings of gratitude, love, respect and faith . They help the individual to concentrate better on whatever we are trying to contemplate. For eg,let us say we would like to concentrate on Lord Shiva, as described in the Mantras or slokas. The mind, no doubt, tries sincerely to concentrate on the meaning of the Mantras and thereby to contemplate on Shiva. But, what about the other senses? The eyes will be seeing something outside, the ears will try to hear outside sounds, the nose gets distracted by some sweet or bad smell,the hands will not keep quiet, the knees and knee joints complain of pain, the sultry weather in a place like Chennai makes the body feel miserable, because of constant perspiration. Thus, all the senses try to distract the mind away from what it is trying to contemplate. Unfortunately, as the Upanishad puts it, that is their nature.

.Paraanchi khani vyatrnat swayambhuhu; tasmaat paraak pashyati naantaraatman.

(Brahma the creator, created the senses only to look "outwards.. That is how, they never turn "inwards").That is what we find in the Lalitha Sahasranama also

. Antarmukha samaaradhya bahirmukha sudurlabha. " (SHE is easily propitiated by those who have all their senses pointing "inwards", but very difficult for those whose senses are always directed "outwards"). Hence, it is very necessary for constant contemplation(dhyana), to have all the senses to be ONE with the mind. Even if this is not possible, we must atleast see that the senses co-operate in the process with the mind, by making them do things that are complementary to the feelings aroused by the mantras. That is where the "rituals" help.

For eg:If one sits to perform a puja of a shiva linga, he has an icon of Shiva in front of him.The contemplation is to be of Shiva in the linga.The eyes will be looking at the linga and enjoying its splendour and beauty. The ears will be listening to the Mantras recited by the individual or others. The nose will be busy in inhaling the sweet fragrance of the flowers made ready for the Puja.the tongue will be busy in reciting the Mantras or stotras.The hands will be engaged in performing Abhisheka or Puja. The body has to sit in a particular posture convenient, but with all due respect to the individual. Thus, all the outward senses will be engaged in acts complementary to the act of contemplation. With this kind of co-operation of the senses, the experience of contemplation is 100%.The same thing holds good in performing a homa too. The eyes will be directly seeing the resplendent Fire God,the symbol of "Paramatma"; the ears will be listening to he mantras;the nose inhaling the fragrance of the "homa dhuma";the hands engaged in the act of "homa" itself. And thus, the pleasure of contemplating the deity will be complete.

A day-to-day mundane analogy will not be out of place here. Forty or fifty years ago, when TV wasn.t there, we used to hear the radio commentary of the cricket matches being played in Australia or England and enjoy. But then, we could only listen and not see. Now, that TV is beaming all the matches Live, we can "see" the actual match with our eyes and listen to the commentary too. Now, the pleasure is definitely doubled or even trebled. Much more should be the pleasure of those who actually watch the match from the pavilions. Thus, when all the outward senses are engaged in the same act of enjoying the scene, along with the mind, the pleasure of the experience is boundless. Exactly the same thing can be said about our rituals. It must however be reiterated that the mere fact of the outward senses engaged in those religious acts without the mind contemplating on the same, will be completely futile, as no pleasure can be experienced without the association of the mind.Again,(at the risk of tedious repetition!), it must be said, that if the mind has to be engaged in such an act, one MUST understand what he is reciting--be it a mantra, a shloka or a nama. That is how , Yaska, the Rishi who wrote "nirukta.(the meaning of the Vedas) said:

sthaanurayam bhaaraharaha kilabhuth;adheetya vedaan\,navijaanaati\,yaha artham.

(He who has studied the Vedas but does not know the meaning, is indeed, a stone pillar meant for supporting a heavy load). IF one does not know the meaning of what one recites, the mind refuses to dwell on the deity whose qualities, the Mantra is expected to extol. Let us not be under the dangerous illusion that the deity to whom we are performing the Puja will be more than satisfied by our external, mechanical acts!!

One may ask the question, whether contemplation or meditation is not possible without the external acts. Yes, it is possible. But only when our mind is completely free from all kinds of external forces and pressures and free from the normal maladies of humans like greed,envy,anger,hatred,avariciousness,fear etc. We may , no doubt, sit in a closed room, with closed eyes, sit in a particular posture, giving no room to our external senses to grab something from outside. But this denial is a forced one and the senses become restless. Moreover, the mind being what it is, cannot remain concentrated on any thing unless, there is a concrete object. It flies from place to place. Even the repetition of a mantra may not be able to harness it because it does not know on what to concentrate. Should it be on the letters? Should it be on the image envisaged by the shlokas? Wthout an image or some symbol, in front of us, the sight of which is carried by the eyes to the mind, it is very difficult for the mind to envisage an image and concentrate on it too. Should we concentrate on the meaning of the mantra? Yes, it can do it- once, twice or thrice. Then the mind gets bored and jumps elsewhere. It is here, that the rituals help the mind. They are there to strengthen the feelings aroused in the mind and the latter can go on thinking about it with the different rituals keeping the mind fresh.

All the ritualistic processes are meant for those simple masses who are still getting initiated into the intricacies of spiritualism, so that it helps in contemplation of our creator and aids us in developing a gratitude towards HIM and by contemplating more, we one fine day can hope to rid ourselves of the "thamogunas. (the negative qualities like greed,jealousy,anger etc etc) and cleanse our mind.

There definitely were and are there now, the great souls who are able to concentrate and have achieved much without the help of rituals. Let us pay our respects to them.

Prof. Shri R. Srikanta Kumara Swamy, 408, Lakshmi Ramaswamy soudha, Jayalakshmi road. Chamarajapuram Mysore Ph:0821-2330454